An Alliance of Offense and Defense! Broken!

"Of course," Mobius nodded.

"Good."

The conversation between the two was very brief.

Then, Mei took out her phone and turned on the speakerphone.

"To make a good bowl of fried rice, first of all..."

"... This is last-minute cramming?" Elysia's eyelids twitched, and recalling the previous comment about "very experienced"... Why do these two seem a bit unreliable?

"It's okay, I was just cramming at the last minute—I don't believe she can do better than me."

Seeing Mei's actions, Mobius sneered.

Everyone's just cramming at the last minute, so what if you can do better than me?

A virtuous wife? I don't believe you can be that virtuous!

"Um... Klein, how about we both run away?"

Sensing something was amiss, Elysia forced a smile and suggested something to her fellow sufferers beside her.

Klein: "..."

Chapter 128 The Alliance Between Attack and Defense Breaks Down!

"... Huh? Surprisingly edible? And actually pretty good?"

Elysia made no attempt to hide her surprise at Mei's fried rice.

Meanwhile, Mobius, standing next to him, had already given up on speaking.

Is the gap really that big?

"I must admit, I have no talent for cooking."

Mei looked at Mobius's unwilling face and said calmly.

"When I was a child, I wanted to learn to cook, but I was... I was rejected."

There were outsiders present, including someone as dangerous as Elysia, so Mei concealed Liu Bai's presence.

She still remembers that when she said she wanted to learn cooking, Liu Bai's reply was, "My suggestion is that you eat your fill before you think about it again."

Although it was a polite way of saying no, it was still a rejection.

"You call this a lack of talent?" Mobius smirked.

If that's what you call lacking talent, then she might as well be dead.

Incidentally, she also secretly tasted a bite of the fried rice she made... the taste was truly indescribable.

"Because I'm not cooking, I'm just imitating."

Mei held up her phone expressionlessly. "If I could perfectly imitate the chef who is being used as an example, from chopping vegetables and using ingredients to even stirring and flipping the food... what are the chances that I would make a terrible meal?"

"... infinitely close to zero."

After a moment's thought, Mobius replied with a sour expression.

"But complete imitation..."

"I've been physically fit since I was a child, so unless it's a fancy technique or an extremely complicated cooking method, imitation isn't difficult for me... In that case, it shouldn't be difficult for you either, Dr. Mobius, right?"

"That's true..." In fact, the requirements in this regard are not high.

"In fact, when it comes to chopping vegetables, as long as it's roughly the same, the ingredients only need to be calculated according to the proportions, and the difference will be minimal."

Mei continued, "The only thing worth noting is the heat, but in this respect... as long as it's not undercooked or burnt, it's fine—after all, most people's sense of taste isn't that sensitive, and most ingredients aren't that delicate."

Speaking of ingredients, Liu Bai suddenly remembered a common explanation of steak.

Rare or medium-rare steak - raw

Medium-rare - Half-cooked

Seven-tenths cooked - done

Fully ripe - too old

It looks complicated and sophisticated, but this grading system is really just that simple. Most Chinese people can accept starting with medium-rare because what is called medium-well steak is actually the traditional Chinese definition of normal doneness—crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, just right...

"If we calculate it this way..."

Mobius seemed to understand.

"Overall, the dishes I imitate are about 80% to 90% similar to the original dishes, and they are perfectly applicable to all kinds of home-style dishes." Mei pushed up her glasses.

"I see, that's something I never thought of..."

Mobius nodded, showing an expression that said, "I've learned something."

"So, when I made it before, I did add a little bit more based on intuition—or rather, who would keep calculating while cooking?"

Honestly, was that really "just a little bit"?

Liu Bai was already itching to complain.

"But then again, it seems you've failed quite a few times before, Mei."

Mobius' mood improved a little after he realized this.

However, Mei didn't bother to respond.

With the guidance he received, Mobius was instantly energized and ready to try again.

"..."

It feels a bit strange.

"Cooking should be something more spontaneous and casual, right?"

Elysia complained, "Don't make it sound like academic research!"

"You can't do whatever you want."

Mei stared at Elysia with a blank expression, her gaze making Elysia a little uneasy.

"Didn't you already try the result that Dr. Mobius just produced at will?"

"This..."

Just mentioning this brings back the bitter and salty taste of that salt block mixed with excessive MSG.

"... I think I probably won't want to eat salty food for the next couple of days."

"By the way, the dish we just made was based on Dr. Mobius's observation of a video—although he made a few minor modifications."

"Is it really just 'minor' processing? Or is it absolutely terrible?"

After eating Mobius's meal, Elysia's spirits dropped.

"Do you mean by 'big' you mean blowing the whole office up?"

"No, as scientists, we do know what could blow up an office, so we generally avoid that possibility," Mei said seriously.

"The usual... what about the other two?"

"Cheap hands."

Mei, expressionless, uttered vulgar words that were completely out of character for her.

"Adding a little more or less based on intuition, or adding other things based on intuition—all of these fall into the category of being impulsive."

"Do you use the term 'one point' when doing research?"

Elysia felt like she was starting to understand the thought processes of these two scientists.

So she realized that what you call "a little bit" is not "a little bit" in the eyes of a normal person at all!

"No, the lab has accurate data, but when it comes to cooking... I think I know what Miss Elysia wants to ask."

Mei thought for a moment, "Elysia should know the saying 'add flour if there's too much water, add water if there's too much flour,' right?"

"... Okay, I understand."

There's no need to say anything more; this analogy will make it clear to Elysia.

Neither of them is good. If you keep adding them back and forth, the whole dish will become inedible, right?

As if that wasn't enough, Mei added, "By the way, not everyone adds a little bit to their food before cooking, so sometimes people have the idea of 'just go with the flow and do it all at once'."

"..."

Elysia sighed and rubbed her forehead.

"This is the first time I've realized that cooking can be so dangerous."

Well, it's completely changed my worldview.

"But don't worry, generally speaking, it's just a little unpalatable, it won't kill you."

"Could you perhaps raise your requirements a little higher, Dr. Mei?"

The idea that food is acceptable as long as it doesn't kill people... that kind of thinking will set back the world's food culture by thousands of years!

"But then again, Dr. Mei, you really know a lot about these things... The reasons behind this are so dark that I don't want to think about them."

To see such a painful expression on this Pink Elf Miss's face... in a way, it has extremely valuable historical significance.

"... It's just that I've realized how important talent really is."

Mei's indifference finally crumbled.

"However, there are always more solutions than problems, aren't there? At least this method can indeed produce delicious food."

Judging solely from the results, Mei's method was undoubtedly successful.

"Okay... I can't argue with that."

Elysia thought about it and could only agree, but then a new question arose in her Elysia.

"By the way, why did you two suddenly start a cooking competition?"

"... Huh?"

Not only did Mei utter a bewildered sound, but even Mobius, who was cooking, froze in his tracks.

"Huh~~?"

Elysia suddenly revealed a mischievous and playful smile.

"Could there be something unspeakable about this? For example..."

"Elysia ..."

Mobius turned off the induction cooker and looked at the lively pink-haired girl with a blank expression.

"Don't overthink it. Mei and I just happened to be chatting about cooking and we were checking each other's work."

"..."

Do you guys lie without even thinking?

Dr. Mobius, with your culinary skills, what else can prove it?

... Just thinking about Mobius's fried rice made Elysia feel a bitter and salty taste in her mouth.

Forgive her bluntness, but that kind of cooking skill is almost murderous, isn't it?

Thinking about it now, I'm really amazing that I actually ate that block of salt and MSG...

"..."

Elysia's complex gaze made Mobius silently turn his head away.

There must be a reason for this.

Elysia confirmed this with absolute certainty.

But...

(Dr. Mobius's reaction was quite unexpected, wasn't it?)

Elysia thought the other party would be more forceful in driving her away.